A desperate Washington team dug down and played tough defense to hold off automated UCLA 70-63. Most of the shooting was ugly. Enter C.J. Wilcox. The redshirt freshman scored 24 points in the second half, putting together what coach Lorenzo Romar called one of the most remarkable halves in the history of the program. Wilcox needed just 10 shots to score his 24 points. The win was Washington’s 20th and likely sealed an NCAA Tournament bid.

Play of the game
With the shot clock running down, Wilcox hit a deep leaning jump shot and was fouled by Jerime Anderson. Wilcox made the subsequent free throw to push Washington’s lead to 61-53 with 2:05 remaining.

Misplay of the game
Aziz N’Diaye lost a chance at a sure dunk when the ball slipped through his hands and up into the air.

YourThoughts

jerry

Hopefully this win, along with the clutch play of C.J Wilcox, will wake up the slumbering duo of Isaiah Thomas and MBA. These guys appear to be locked in a tight battle to see who can contribute the least during crucial home games.

Art, you are the prototypical downer Seattle sports fan. I’m glad you’ve been banished to this dark corner of the internet.

spudzDP

I think you meant “typical” rather than “prototypical,” which implies that Art is the prototype of the “downer Seattle sports fan.” I am sure there were downer Seattle sports fans before Mr. Thiel. Now go back to your brightly lighted corner of the internet, and leave us alone here in the darkness.

KevinD

I gave up on reading Thiel’s articles when he was at the PI (or was it the Times? … same thing.) because his Husky articles were so mean-spirited. Unlike Jim Moore who loved to bash the Huskies, but did it with humor and tongue-in-cheek.

So I figured I’d give Thiel a 2nd chance now that he’s working someplace new. Nope … same ol’ bile from Thiel. This is the last article I will read from Thiel.

Michael Kaiser

No it is not. Say something original.

Steve59

Great column. You are right-on. And, nothing will happen.

spudzDP

Mark Emmert reminds me of Gorbachev who, after becoming the leader of the Soviet Union, helped to bring it all crumbling down, basically ending Communism in Russia and Eastern Europe. I doubt that Gorby had that intention when he came to power, but he facilitated it with his personality, his relative youth and his new school attitude. Communism was already falling apart, but it needed someone like Gorbachev to help kick it down the stairs. Emmert might be in that same position as far as the NCAA goes.
He is younger than most of the senior citizens who ran the NCAA before, so he is probably more open to new ideas and new ways of looking at things. This could open the door to paying athletes — not like professional football players, but on a scale perceived to insure college players won’t be as tempted to accept illegal payments. This will be the beginning of the end of the NCAA. It will come crashing down faster than any bust of Lenin ever did. Once the cash begins trickling down, every thing will change. The athletes might benefit, but the entire landscape will go through a radical makeover. The loss of the NCAA is no great tragedy, but Saturdays will never be the same.

Anonymous Coward

OK, pay the athletes to make up the difference between expenses covered by a scholarship and actual costs. But can you pay them enough so the kid won’t still be tempted by a big-money sleaze ball agent who can put the kid’s family in a nice house rent free or set up anything goes weekends at a resort? The problem is still there whether you pay them or not. Effective enforcement and penalties will still be needed.

Rusty Shackleford

“The likeliest solution, which is already on the drawing board in some
form, is for the top 64 schools to break away from the NCAA and form
their own professional association of four super-conferences, with
limited connections to the universities and the old rulebook.”

They can call it the Premier League.

[Oops, that name’s already taken.]

1coolguy

Come on Art – If the coaches are liable with JAIL TIME as the consequence, this whole issue becomes moot.
You know it, I know it and Emmert knows it.

The NCAA only needs to establish rules that result in jail time – it’s not that tough.

End of strory.

Anon

The NCAA rules are not law, and the NCAA is not the government so they can not make their rules have the power of law.

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Kirsten Kendrick's Q. & A. with Thiel can be heard every Friday during Morning Edition at 5:35am and 7:35am and again that same day on All Things Considered at 4:45pm. It also airs Saturday at 6:35am and 9:35am.